It wasn’t long ago that some Canadians were up in arms about hockey legend Wayne Gretzky’s ties to U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.
But as the Edmonton Oilers skate their way through the Stanley Cup final, hockey fans say it’s time to let bygones be bygones.
“I don’t think it matters,” said Craig Hiscock, a longtime Oilers fan, as he posed Wednesday for a photo with a statue of Gretzky outside Rogers Place in Edmonton ahead of Game 1.
“Let’s forget about the past. What he did here was a lot for the city, a lot for hockey.”
The Gretzky statue was vandalized in March and smeared with what appeared to be and strongly smelled like feces. On Wednesday, a hip-high metal fence was up around the bronze figure.
An online petition started in February calling for a new name for Wayne Gretzky Drive also has about 14,000 signatures.
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Gretzky, the Ontario-born hockey star who led the Oilers to four Stanley Cup victories in the 1980s, recently drew the ire of Canadians for his public support of Trump, who has repeatedly expressed his desire for Canada to join the U.S and become its 51st state.
The Great One was photographed with Trump several times at the president’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. In January, Gretzky and his wife, Janet, attended Trump’s inauguration in Washington.
Frustrations grew after he appeared as honorary captain for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off final with the United States. Video footage showed him giving the U.S. team a thumbs-up as he walked to the ice.
Gretzky also congratulated Dallas Stars players in their locker room last month, after they advanced to the Western Conference final.
The Oilers eliminated the Stars in five games and now have one win against the Florida Panthers in the Cup final. Game 2 is Friday night.
‘We love him’
Brian Foulken, who became a fan during the Gretzky era and collects Oilers merchandise, said Gretzky’s accomplishments, including multiple scoring records that stand to this day, still resonate with people.
As for the criticism, Foulken said people are going to have their own opinions.
“At the end of the day, [Gretzky] played here for a long time. The diehard Oilers [fans], we love him,” he said outside the arena before Game 1.
“He’s an amazing player.”
Foulken added that current Oilers captain Connor McDavid is inching closer to Gretzky-level greatness.
Darren Rogers, a Gretzky fan since the Oilers’ inception into the NHL in 1979, said Gretzky’s leadership led the team to win multiple Stanley Cups.
Politics aside, that accomplishment should matter more to people in the grand scheme of things, Rogers said.
Gretzky was in Edmonton for Wednesday’s game.
Pink pony bandwagon
And as storied as Gretzky is to the Oilers franchise, he appeared to still be catching up to this new generation’s fan base. On an American sports network, he sat side by side with commentators, as they discussed the Oilers’ new tradition of playing the pop song Pink Pony Club.
Players have been tight-lipped about the significance of the Chappell Roan hit, typically heard after the team plays La Bamba by Los Lobos following a win.
“Pink Pony — is that a band or is that a song?” the 64-year-old Gretzky asked TNT Sports co-host Paul Bissonnette following the Oilers’ 4-3 overtime victory in Game 1.
“[Roan] sings a song, ‘Pink Pony Club,’ and it’s famous. It’s on the radio,” Bissonnette answered.
“It’s the new generation, Wayne,” he added.
Gretzky appeared disappointed to learn Roan isn’t Canadian, but still seemed eager to check out the song.
“I gotta get that [as] my ringtone,” Gretzky said.
